Seven years after funds began disappearing from Tufts accounts, allegedly making their way into the pockets of two administrators, an insurance check may be within reach for the university and affected student groups.
This comes amid general doubt that former employees Jodie Nealley and Ray Rodriguez will be able to pay restitution to the university if convicted of embezzlement.
Annie Wong, the Office for Campus Life's business manager, and Matt Shapanka, the Tufts Community Union treasurer, said that they had been told that the university could receive an insurance payout by the end of the month.
"That's all I heard, sometime in September we might get our money," Wong said.
Other university officials have confirmed that the administration filed a claim in November, but they have declined to confirm any specific timetable for when the money will get to Tufts. They have also refused to provide the Daily with the name of the insurance company Tufts is using or the amount of money they are expecting.
The insurance company is now conducting an investigation and its progress will determine when and if the payout arrives, according to Senior University Counsel Dickens Mathieu.
"We've met with the insurance company and provided them with documentation to support the claim," he said. "Now the insurance company has to evaluate the claim before it will either come back with more questions or its position on coverage."
Director of Public Relations Kim Thurler said the university has a policy that covers crimes, including embezzlement. She would not go into further detail.
Thomas McGurty, the university's treasurer and vice president for finance, would not comment on whether he is confident that any money will come in, citing an inability to speculate.
Still, Assistant Director of Public Relations Suzanne Miller said that the university has filed to recover "the full amount of the loss." Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone's office puts that number at $977,449.
Mathieu's office helped file the insurance claim along with Director of Risk Management and Insurance David Slater, who could not be reached for comment.
Meanwhile, Leone's office has indicted Nealley and Rodriguez on larceny charges. Jessica Venezia, a spokesperson for Leone, said that it is standard in such cases to ask defendants to pay restitution if convicted. "So yes, we would request it as a term of probation," she said.
But sources within the university are not holding their breath. "The chances are that they can't pay," said Marc Miller, the director of administration and finance for the School of Arts and Sciences.
Shapanka said that he would like to see them repay the university, but that his main concern is seeing money returned to student groups, whatever the source.
"I think that from the standpoint of right and wrong, yes, they should pay up," he said. "But from a practical standpoint, I want to make sure that the students get what they deserve, whether it's from Jodie and Ray's pockets or from the insurance company."
As the criminal proceedings against Nealley and Rodriguez go forward, it remains unclear how closely the insurance company will be watching.
Mathieu said the insurance claim is separate from the outcome of the trial and that the payout would not necessarily have to wait until after a verdict is rendered.
Leonard Fisher (A '48), an insurance attorney in Brookline, agreed that Tufts may not have to stand in line while Leone's office prosecutes the pair.
"If Tufts proves its loss, then [the company] can settle with Tufts immediately," he said.
But some are not convinced that the money will reach the Hill quickly if the proceedings against Nealley and Rodriguez drag on. Miller, the director of administration and finance, said that to his understanding the insurance company will be interested in seeing how the criminal charges play out.
I think everything is pending on the outcome of the trial," he said. Still, he said that he expects the university to collect regardless of the verdict. "We have our insurance policy and the insurance policy will cover [the losses]," he said.
Regardless of when the insurance company makes the payment, it may decide to pursue Nealley and Rodriguez through the civil courts to get its money back, according to Fisher.
Tufts may also have the option to go after Nealley and Rodriguez via the same route, but Miller, the assistant PR director, said that university officials have not reached any decision about whether to seek restitution outside of the criminal proceedings.
The university filed its initial claim the same month Nealley was fired for embezzlement. She is charged with taking money generated from the Student Activities Fee, as well as with skimming revenue brought in by groups such as Tufts Student Resources.
In November, the university said the amount of stolen funds amounted to around $300,000. A more thorough investigation later implicated Rodriguez, and the total jumped to nearly $1 million.
According to McGurty, the treasurer, the university has kept the insurance company up-to-date about the changing number. While it remains unclear when Tufts will get a final answer from the company, McGurty said that providers have an incentive to hand out relatively fast payoffs in order to keep policyholders happy.
"If they want to keep the account, then they could settle with Tufts earlier," McGurty said.
